Course Code : Course Title...mise-en-scene, stardom, authorship, genre, and audience. Films shown will illustrate the subjects discussed in the lectures, and there will be a small

Film Programme

School of English, Film, Theatre, & Media Studies

Te Kura Tānga Kōrero Ingarihi, Kiriata, Whakaari, Pāpāho

1

FILM 101: Introduction to Film Studies

Trimester 2 2011

11 July to 12 November 2011

20 Points

TRIMESTER DATES

Teaching dates: 11 July to 14 October 2011

Mid-trimester break: 22 August to 4 September 2011

Study week: 17 to 21 October 2011

Last piece of assessment due: 27 October 2011

WITHDRAWAL DATES

Information on withdrawals and refunds may be found at

http://www.victoria.ac.nz/home/admisenrol/payments/withdrawlsrefunds.aspx

NAMES AND CONTACT DETAILS

Dr Alfio Leotta

Email: [email protected]

http://www.victoria.ac.nz/home/admisenrol/payments/withdrawlsrefunds.aspx


FILM PROGRAMME COURSE OUTLINE FILM 101

2

Room: 81 Fairlie Terrace, room 206

Office Hours: to be announced on Blackboard

Tutors: to be announced on Blackboard

CLASS TIMES AND LOCATIONS

Lectures and Screenings*

Monday: Screening 10-11.50am – Lecture 12.00 – 12.50am New Kirk Lecture Theatre 303

Wednesday: Screening 10-11.50am – Lecture 12.00 – 12.50am New Kirk Lecture Theatre 303

Tutorials

All tutorials will take place on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. Details of times and locations will be

posted on S-Cubed.

*Please note that there will be some exceptions (see Course Programme pages: 9-13).

COURSE DELIVERY

The course is delivered by two three-hour combined lecture and screening sessions per week, and a 50

minute weekly tutorial (unless otherwise stated in the course programme). Lectures involve the analysis of

clips, creative exercises, and the presentation of arguments and debates. Tutorials will provide the

opportunity for further discussion and debate, textual analysis, and the raising of questions in relation to

the reading, the screening and the lecture. Students will be encouraged to take active participation in both

the lectures and the tutorials.

COMMUNICATION OF ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Any additional information concerning the course, including changes, will be announced in classes, posted

on the Film 101 course notice board in 83 Fairlie Terrace, and on Blackboard.

COURSE PRESCRIPTION

An introduction to cinema as an art form, within a social and cultural context. The course will explain film

terminology, survey motion-picture technology, and deal with concepts such as narrative structure, realism,

mise-en-scene, stardom, authorship, genre, and audience. Films shown will illustrate the subjects discussed

in the lectures, and there will be a small practical component. Students should gain an understanding of the

basic elements of film studies and greater visual literacy, and will become familiar with forms of critical

practice in relation to the cinema.

COURSE CONTENT

This course is organized into two main areas of study:



3

Film Style and Form

Weeks 1-6: We will explore how films create meaning through their formal or aesthetic qualities. We

will employ the different elements of cinema, such as mise-en-scene, narrative, sound, and

editing, to develop your ability to “read” or interpret a film.

Theoretical Approaches and Issues in Film Studies

Weeks 7-12: In the second part of the course, we will examine a number of different conceptual and

theoretical approaches to Film Studies. We will use science fiction to investigate the

concept of genre, and discuss the work of European directors such as Truffaut and Loach as

examples of film authorship. We will examine the conventions of genre and art cinema as

well as discussing concepts such as fandom, film production, national cinema and

representation.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

The aim of this course is to introduce you to the textual analysis of films, and to some of the critical

approaches employed in Film Studies. After completing this course you should be able to undertake close

textual analysis of films, and critically use terms such as narrative, mise-en-scene, sound and editing. You

will possess knowledge of the conventions of commercial and art cinema, and approaches to cinema such

as genre and authorship. You should also have developed a critical awareness of the ways in which

categories such as gender and audience can be used to analyse the social and cultural meanings of film. You

will acquire a critical awareness of how cinema generates social and cultural meanings and you will gain

specific knowledge of film aesthetics, film production, national cinema, post-colonial cinema and film

audiences in relation to media effects and fandom.

The course will improve your analytical and critical skills. It will develop your ability to conduct film analysis

and independent research. It will also enhance your ability to write essays, make oral presentations, and

work creatively in small groups.

EXPECTED WORKLOAD

This is a 20 point course, so the University expects you to devote 200 hours to it. In addition to attending

lectures, screenings and tutorials (83 hours), you should spend about ten hours per week during the

teaching period on reading, preparing for tutorials, working on assignments, and reflecting on lectures and

screenings (117 hours).



4

GROUP WORK

The first assignment for Film 101 is a group creative exercise and presentation. Your tutor will place you in

a group of 4-5 people during week 3 of the course. Students will receive an individual grade for the

presentation (see Assessment Requirements).

READINGS

The required readings for each tutorial are listed at the end of this guide. Most of them are contained in

Bordwell and Thompson’s Film Art: An Introduction (9th edition- International), additional readings will be

made available on electronic closed reserve and/or Blackboard.

All undergraduate textbooks and student notes will be sold from the Memorial Theatre foyer from 4 to

22 July 2011, while postgraduate textbooks and student notes will be available from the top floor of

Vicbooks in the Student Union Building, Kelburn Campus. After week two of the trimester all undergraduate

textbooks and student notes will be sold from Vicbooks on Level 4 of the Student Union Building.

You can order textbooks and student notes online at www.vicbooks.co.nz or can email an order or enquiry

to [email protected]. Books can be couriered to you or they can be picked up from nominated

collection points at each campus. You will be contacted when they are available.

ASSESSMENT REQUIREMENTS

All assessments for this course will be internal. There will be three assessment items for this subject.

Further information about the assignments will be placed on Blackboard.

First Assignment

Group Creative Exercise: 10 minute presentation of a 12 shot storyboard sequence

Due Date: week 6 during tutorials

Weighting: 20%

Description:

In this group exercise you will design and present a 12 shot storyboard sequence using mise-en-scene,

music, sound, cinematography, narrative and editing techniques introduced in the first six weeks of the

course.

Assessment Criteria:

Understanding and application of film terms and concepts (such as mise-en-scene elements,

diegetic sound, long shot, low angle framing, match-on-action, etc.)

Critical understanding of how the sequence creates meaning for a potential audience

http://www.vicbooks.co.nz/

mailto:[email protected]



5

Originality and creativity in the design of the 12 shot audio-visual sequence

Effective communication and team work

Technological/creative proficiency

Time management

Relationship to Learning Objectives:

The assignment requires you to creatively apply your understanding of aesthetic, formal and structural

terms and concepts introduced in the course. It will also improve your oral expression and your ability to

work in small groups.

Second Assignment: Textual Analysis Essay (2000 words)

Due Date: week 8, Monday 12 September

Weighting: 35%

Description:

This essay will involve the close textual analysis of a 2-3 minute sequence from a film screened during the

course. Your analysis should pay attention to the important mise-en-scene, sound, editing, and other

semiotic, perceptual, and affective elements in the sequence. Your essay should indicate what you see as

the implications and function of the elements you identify. You can refer briefly to the wider narrative/plot,

but your emphasis should be on offering a detailed analysis of your chosen sequence.

Assessment Criteria:

Completion of the set task in a clear, direct, legible, relevant, complete and timely manner.

Evidence of critical and analytical skills

Understanding and correct application of terms and concepts used in film analysis

Quality and originality of the essay

Quality and fluency of your expression


This assignment will improve your knowledge of the notions studied in the first six weeks of the course. It

will enable you to develop your independent research, critical argumentation and referencing skills. It will

also improve your written expression.

Final Assignment: Critical Analysis Essay (3000 words)

Due Date: Thursday 27 October

Weighting: 45%



6

Description

This will be a research/critical analysis essay that deals with one of the topics discussed in the second part

of the course (week 7-12).

Assessment criteria:

Fulfilment of the set task in a clear, complete, direct, original and relevant manner.

Understanding and articulation of course issues in a critical fashion.

Critical evaluation of research and film materials.

Argumentation and essay structure

Quality and fluency of your expression

Accurate and complete referencing and bibliographical details.


This assignment relates to the learning objectives that ask you to consider the economic, social and cultural

implications of film and cinema. It will enable you to develop your textual analysis, independent research,

and critical argumentation skills. It will also improve your written expression.

Handing in Assignments:

Coursework assignments must be submitted by the deadline in both of the following ways:

Upload electronic file to turnitin.com (login and password will be provided during the

semester)

Hand in hard copy with signed coversheet to the drop box at the SEFTMS administration office

at 83 Fairlie Terrace.

Do not submit your essay to your tutor. You must keep a copy of your assignment before submitting it.

ASSIGNMENT COVER SHEETS

Assignment cover sheets and extension forms can be found on Blackboard or outside the Programme

office. Remember to fill in your tutor’s name.

EXTENSIONS AND PENALTIES

Extensions will be granted only in exceptional and unforeseen circumstances. Issues of workload do not

constitute exceptional and unforseen circumstances. If you require an extension, you must complete an

extension request form (available on your course Blackboard site) prior to the assignment due date. This

must be accompanied by relevant documentation (e.g. a doctor’s certificate) where appropriate. Tutors

cannot grant extensions.



7

Work submitted after the deadline will be penalised by a 2.5 percent deduction from your total mark per

work day. Late work also receives only minimal comments from your marker.

MANDATORY COURSE REQUIREMENTS

To gain a pass in this course you must:

Submit all three assignments specified for this course, on or by the specified dates (subject to such

provisions as are stated for late submission of work)

Attend at least 8 tutorials

CLASS REPRESENTATIVES

A class representative will be elected in the first class, and that person’s name and contact details will be

available to VUWSA, the Course Coordinator and the class. The class representative provides a

communication channel to liaise with the Course Coordinator on behalf of students.

STATEMENT ON LEGIBILITY

You are expected to present work that meets appropriate standards. Work submitted during the course

(i. e. work that is internally assessed) should be typed or prepared on a computer. Where handwritten work

is required you are expected to write clearly. If this is deemed 'illegible', you will be given a photocopy of

the work and asked to transcribe it to an acceptable standard (preferably typed) within a specified time

frame.

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY AND PLAGIARISM

Academic integrity means that university staff and students, in their teaching and learning are expected to

treat others honestly, fairly and with respect at all times. It is not acceptable to mistreat academic,

intellectual or creative work that has been done by other people by representing it as your own original

work.

Academic integrity is important because it is the core value on which the University’s learning, teaching and

research activities are based. Victoria University’s reputation for academic integrity adds value to your

qualification.

The University defines plagiarism as presenting someone else’s work as if it were your own, whether you

mean to or not. ‘Someone else’s work’ means anything that is not your own idea. Even if it is presented in

your own style, you must acknowledge your sources fully and appropriately. This includes:

Material from books, journals or any other printed source

The work of other students or staff

Information from the internet



8

Software programs and other electronic material

Designs and ideas

The organisation or structuring of any such material

Find out more about plagiarism, how to avoid it and penalties, on the University’s website:

http://www.victoria.ac.nz/home/study/plagiarism.aspx

TURNITIN

Work provided for assessment in this course may be checked for academic integrity by the electronic

search engine http://www.turnitin.com. Turnitin is an online plagiarism prevention tool which compares

submitted work with a very large database of existing material. Turnitin will retain a copy of submitted

material on behalf of the University for detection of future plagiarism, but access to the full text of

submissions is not made available to any other party.

WHERE TO FIND MORE DETAILED INFORMATION

Find key dates, explanations of grades and other useful information at www.victoria.ac.nz/home/study.

Find out how academic progress is monitored and how enrolment can be restricted at

www.victoria.ac.nz/home/study/academic-progress. Most statutes and policies are available at

www.victoria.ac.nz/home/about/policy, except qualification statutes, which are available via the Calendar

webpage at www.victoria.ac.nz/home/study/calendar.aspx (See Section C).

Other useful information for students may be found at the website of the Assistant Vice-Chancellor

(Academic), at www.victoria.ac.nz/home/about_victoria/avcacademic.

http://www.victoria.ac.nz/home/study/plagiarism.aspx

http://www.victoria.ac.nz/home/study

http://www.victoria.ac.nz/home/study/academic-progress

http://www.victoria.ac.nz/home/study/calendar.aspx

http://www.victoria.ac.nz/home/about_victoria/avcacademic



9

COURSE PROGRAMME

Week 1:

Lectures:

Monday:

Wednesday:

Film Style and Form

Course Introduction; Why Does Film Matter?

Reading the Moving Image

Screenings:

Monday:

Wednesday:

Back to the Future (Zemeckis, 1985)

Pan’s Labyrinth (El Laberinto del Fauno,2006)

Reading:

Bordwell, D. and Thompson, K. Film Art: An Introduction. Ninth Edition.

McGraw Hill: New York, 2010: 56-77.

Week 2:

Lectures:

Monday:

Wednesday:

Film Style and Form

Cinematography

Mise-en-scene

Screenings:

Monday:

Wednesday:

Run Lola Run (Lola Rennt, Tykwer, 1998)

The Consequences of Love (Le Conseguenze dell’Amore, Sorrentino,2004)

Readings: Bordwell, D. and Thompson, K. Film Art: An Introduction. Ninth Edition.

McGraw Hill: New York, 2010: (Monday: 186-211) (Wednesday: 118-141).

Week 3:

Lectures:

Monday:

Wednesday:

Film Style and Form

Music (Dr. Geoff Stahl)

Sound Design (Dr. Miriam Ross – note this lecture will start at 10am)

Screenings:

Monday:

Wednesday:

Pretty in Pink (Deutch, 1986)

Touch of Evil (Wells, 1958 – note this screening will start at 11am)

Readings: Bordwell, D. and Thompson, K. Film Art: An Introduction. Ninth Edition. McGraw Hill: New York, 2010: (Wednesday: 270-285).

Altman, R. “The Material Heterogeneity of Recorded Sound”. Rick Altman, ed. Sound Theory, Sound Practice. New York: Routledge, 1992: 15-34. Chion, M. "The Audiovisual Contract: Projections of Sound on Image."

In Audio-Vision: Sound on Screen. Columbia UP: New York, 1994: 3-24.



10

Week 4:

Lectures:

Monday:

Wednesday:

Film Style and Form

Editing 1

Editing 2

Screenings:

Monday:

Wednesday:

Requiem for a Dream (Aronofsky, 2000)

Psycho (Hitchcock, 1960)


McGraw Hill: New York, 2010: (Monday and Wednesday: 223-265).

Week 5:

Lectures:

Monday:

Wednesday:

Film Style and Form

N/A

Classical Narrative Storytelling (2 hour lecture)

Screenings:

Monday:

Wednesday:

Gladiator (Scott, 2000)

N/A


McGraw Hill: New York, 2010: (Wednesday: 78-103).

Week 6:

Lectures:

Monday:

Wednesday:

Film Style and Form

N/A

Art Cinema and Alternatives to Classical Storytelling (2 hour lecture)

Note: Group Creative Exercise: 10 minute presentation in tutorial

Screenings:

Monday:

Wednesday:

Un chien andalou (Bunuel, 1929); The Exterminating Angel (El Angelo Exterminador, Bunuel,

1962)

N/A


McGraw Hill: New York, 2010: (Wednesday 408-421)

Bordwell, D. “The Art Cinema as a Mode of Film Practice.” In Cathy Fowler, Ed. The

European Cinema Reader. Routledge: London & New York, 2002: 94-102.



11

Mid Trimester Break: Monday 22 August to Sunday 4 September 2011

Week 7:

Lectures:

Monday:

Wednesday:

Issues in Film Studies

Genre 1: Science Fiction

Genre 2: Science Fiction and Audiences

Screenings:

Monday:

Wednesday:

The Day the Earth Stood Still (Wise, 1951)

Trekkies (Nygard, 1997)


McGraw Hill: New York, 2010: (Monday and Wednesday 328-348).

Altman, R. Film/Genre. British Film Institute: London, 1999: 13-29.

Sobchack, V. “Science Fiction,” in Wes D. Gehring (ed.), Handbook of American Film

Genres. Greenwood Press: Westport, CN, 1988: 229-238.

Jenkins, H. “Star Trek Rerun, Reread, Rewritten: Fan Writing as Textual Poaching,” rpt. in

Sean Redmond (ed.), Liquid Metal: The Science Fiction Film Reader. Wallflower Press:

London, 2004: 264-280.

Week 8:

Lectures:

Monday:

Wednesday:


Film Authorship 1

Film Authorship 2

Note: Textual analysis essay due on Monday

Screenings:

Monday:

Wednesday:

The 400 Blows (Les quatre cent coups, Truffaut, 1959)

Tickets (Olmi, Loach and Kiarostami, 2000)

Readings: Sarris, A. “Notes on the Auteur Theory in 1962", in Mast G. & Cohen M. (eds.), Film

Theory and Criticism: Introductory Readings, 2nd Edition, Oxford University Press:

Oxford, 1979: 650-665.

Naremore, J. “Authorship” A Companion to Film Theory. Eds. Miller T. & Stam R.

Blackwell: Oxford, 2004: 9-24.



12

Allen, D. Finally Truffaut. Secker & Warburg: London, 1985: 35-46.

Clarke, R. 2005, “Tickets – Review”, Sight and Sound, Dec 2005. Vol. 15, Issue 12: 44:

http://www.bfi.org.uk/sightandsound/review/2645

Week 9:

Lectures:

Monday:

Wednesday:


National Cinema (France)

National Cinema (New Zealand)

Screenings:

Monday:

Wednesday:

Three Colours Trilogy - Film White (Film Blanc, Kieslowski, 1994)

The Piano (Campion, 1993)

Readings: Anderson, B. Introduction. Imagined Communities: Reflections on the Origin and Spread

of Nationalism. Verso: London & New York, 1983: 1-8.

O’Regan, T. Australian National Cinema. Routledge: London and New York, 1996: 41-71.

Insdorf, A. Double Lives, Second Chances. The Cinema of Krzystof Kieslowski. Miramax

Book: New York, 1999: 153-164.

Babington, B.” Introduction: The New Zealand Fiction Feature Film: History, Theory,

Practice.” A History of the New Zealand Fiction Feature Film. Manchester University

Press: Manchester, 2009: 1-27.

Week 10:

Lectures:

Monday:

Wednesday:


Representation – Film and Tourism

Representation – Post-Colonial cinema

Screenings:

Monday:

Wednesday:

Whale Rider (Caro, 2003)

Days of Glory (Indigenes, Bouchareb, 2006)

Readings: Beeton, S. Film-Induced Tourism. Channel View Publications: Buffalo, 2005: 1-17. Leotta, A. “Early New Zealand Films and Western Voy(ag)eurs”. Illusions 42,

2010: 8- 13.

Message, K. “Whale Rider and the Politics of Location”. Metro Magazine, 136, Spring

http://www.bfi.org.uk/sightandsound/review/2645



13

2003: 86.

Shohat, E. and Stam, R. Unthinking Eurocentrism: Multiculturalism and the Media

Routledge: London & New York, 1994: 32-49.

Panivong, N. ‘Incorporating Indigenous Soldiers in the Space of the French Nation: Rachid Bouchareb’s Indigenes’, Yale French Studies, no. 115, 2009: 126-140.

Week 11:

Lectures:

Monday:

Wednesday:


N/A

Big Scale versus Small Scale Film Production

Screenings:

Monday:

Wednesday:

Titanic (Cameron, 1997); Clean Linen (Kothari, 2006)

N/A

Readings: Keller, A. “Size Does Matter, Notes on Titanic and James Cameron as Blockbuster auteur,

in Sandler K. & Studlar G. (eds.), Titanic: Anatomy of a Blockbuster, New Rutgers

University Press: Brunswick, NJ, 1999: 132-154.

Kothari, S. and Pearson, S. “Producing media: The project, the vision and the budget”, in

Zuberi, N. & Goode, L. (eds.) Media Studies in Aotearoa 2. Pearson: Auckland, 2010: 1-

11.

Stringer, J. Introduction. Movie Blockbusters. Routledge: London & New York, 2003: 1-

14.

Week 12:

Lectures:

Monday:

Wednesday:


Film History: An Overview

Revision

Screenings:

Monday:

Wednesday:

Citizen Kane (Welles, 1941)

N/A

Readings: Bordwell, D. and Thompson, K. “Film History”, in Film Art: An Introduction. Ninth Edition.

McGraw Hill: New York, 2010: 453-485

Study Week: Monday 17 October to Friday 21 October 2011

Documents

Course Code : Course Title...mise-en-scene, stardom, authorship, genre, and audience. Films shown will illustrate the subjects discussed in the lectures, and there will be a small